New Safewill research shows most Australians have strong views on how their estate should be divided but more than half do not have a current will.
What’s happening: More than one in three Australian parents have considered leaving part or all of their estate to charity instead of their children. For business owners, the legacy conversation is more complex than most realise.
Why this matters: The research highlights a growing gap between what Australians intend to do with their estates and what they have actually formalised legally.
Australia is approaching the largest intergenerational wealth transfer in its history. Over the next two decades, an estimated $5.4 trillion will move from Baby Boomers to the generations that follow, reshaping family finances, charitable giving and business ownership across the country.
New national research commissioned by Safewill, an online will platform, for its Charity Wills Week campaign, reveals that attitudes toward how that wealth should be distributed are shifting in ways that many families, and many business owners, have not yet confronted formally.
For small business owners, the wealth transfer conversation is more complex than it is for most Australians. Personal estate assets and business assets are often intertwined, and decisions about what happens to a business after an owner’s death or retirement involve legal, financial and family dimensions that a standard will may not adequately address.
Yet the research, which surveyed Australians nationally, suggests that most people, including business owners, are approaching this moment without adequate formal planning in place. More than half of Australians do not currently have a will, according to Safewill’s research. Without one, how an estate is managed after death is determined by state law rather than the individual’s own wishes, regardless of private conversations or personal intentions.
Adam Lubofsky, Founder and CEO of Safewill, said attitudes toward inheritance are becoming more values-driven. “For decades, it’s been assumed that children inherit automatically. What we’re now seeing is parents thinking more carefully about the kind of impact they want their estate to have, whether that’s supporting their children, backing a cause they care about, or a combination of the two,” Lubofsky said.
The gap between intention and action
The research highlights a significant gap between what Australians say they want to do with their estates and what they have actually done about it. Two in five Australians say they plan to leave money to charity when they die, according to Safewill’s research. Yet only 8 per cent currently have a charitable gift written into their will. Nearly one in four say they never realised they could leave money to charity through their will at all.
Among Australians under 55, 40 per cent say they plan to leave a charitable gift but have not yet updated their will to reflect that intention, according to the research. Safewill’s own platform data shows the proportion of wills created through its service that include a charitable gift has grown from 5 per cent in 2020 to 11 per cent in 2025, more than doubling in five years. But the gap between those who intend to give and those who have formalised that intention remains wide.
For business owners, the intention and action gap has additional consequences. A business that has not been formally incorporated into succession planning may be subject to forced sale, family disputes or unintended ownership transfers when an owner dies without adequate documentation in place.
What is changing and why
The research also points to a broader shift in how Australians think about the purpose of inheritance. A majority of those surveyed believe inheritance should go to charity or be passed further down the family line if adult children are already financially secure, according to Safewill. More than one in three parents have considered leaving part or all of their estate to charity instead of their children.
At the same time, 7 in 10 Australians say they would care if a parent left money to charity instead of them, even though 80 per cent say their loved ones would not mind if they donated part of their estate to charity. That tension between what people say in the abstract and how they feel when it affects them directly is one of the defining features of the current inheritance conversation, according to the research.
Isabelle Marcarian, Principal Solicitor at Safewill, said the rise in charitable giving reflects a broader shift in how Australians think about legacy, but that careful planning is essential to ensure those intentions are honoured. “What we’re increasingly seeing is Australians wanting their will to reflect both their family and the causes they care about,” Marcarian said. “Charitable gifts can be a powerful way to create lasting impact, and they tend to work best when families understand and support those decisions.”
Marcarian also flagged a legal consideration that is particularly relevant for business owners considering non-standard estate arrangements. “In Australia, spouses and children do have rights under family provision law, so if someone is considering reducing or excluding a family inheritance in favour of charity, it’s important to approach that carefully. Having open conversations and seeking appropriate advice helps ensure those wishes are ultimately honoured,” she said.
What business owners should do now
For small business owners, the research is a prompt to ask whether personal estate planning and business succession planning are being treated as the same conversation when they may require different approaches.
A personal will addresses how individual assets are distributed. Business succession planning addresses what happens to the business itself, including ownership transfer, valuation, ongoing operations and the interests of any partners, co-founders or employees with a stake in the outcome. Both need to be in place and both need to be current.
The generational divide in the research is also worth noting for business owners thinking about the next decade. More than half of Gen Z and Millennials either have or plan to include a charitable gift in their will, according to Safewill, compared to lower rates among older generations. As wealth transfers across generations, the expectations and values of the recipients will shape how that capital is used, invested and redistributed.
For business owners who have not revisited their estate and succession arrangements recently, the $5.4 trillion transfer underway is a reminder that the best time to formalise those intentions is well before they become urgent.
Research was commissioned by Safewill and conducted nationally. Safewill is an online will platform currently offering free will creation until 29 March 2026 as part of its Charity Wills Week campaign. Dynamic Business has reported on the research findings independently. This article does not constitute legal or financial advice.
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